Rosh HaShanah 5775: Toward Healing on Israel

Most people spend their summers reading books, relaxing on the beach, and maybe catching a few Mets losses live and in person. I spent my summer as a chaplain in a hospital. On Mount Sinai Medical Center’s ninth floor I visited patients to talk, listen, and, hopefully, be a part of the healing process. I helped my patients as they tried to process their experiences of suffering and their co-occurring feelings of anger, fear, confusion, and sadness. You know, easy stuff.

One day in late July I had a referral to visit Mrs. B, a soon-to-be-discharged Catholic patient. I was feeling confident after a meaningful conversation with her, but then, the dreaded moment came. She looked up at the television, which had been on throughout our conversation, gave me a knowing glance and asked, “so, what do you think about all of that?” On the screen were scrolling headlines about the war between Israel and Hamas. There were images of rockets, demolished buildings, frightened people, and the occasional, requisite pundit. I took a deep breath.